Darth Vader, hot on their trail, ruthlessly destroys the planet Scarif with Jyn and her fellow rebels still on it. He then sets his sights on Leia and her ship Tantive IV, capturing the princess and her compatriots. Jyn and Cassian’s actions help explain the urgency of Leia to give the precious transmission to R2D2 in the opening scene of A New Hope.

Such a smooth transition might not have happened, since it was recently revealed by Rogue One screenwriter Gary Whitta that there was going to be a very different ending where Jyn, Cassian and the rest survived Darth Vader’s attack.

The brave rebels from Rogue One...

With more Star Wars spin-offs confirmed by Disney over the next two years, we’d say everyone’s favourite epic space opera is close to an amazing completion, with more questions answered and secrets revealed.